Writing rule which states that two causes for the same superpower is bad writingThe “Rules” of WritingIs it bad writing or just the plot if the hero ends up being as evil as the villain in order to stop the villain's evil?Would having a story set in a conworld based on the modern age alienate readers?Bending the rules of the english language for effect; sentence fragments and run-onsWhat is the rule for commas?How to organically and believably introduce the tools and skills necessary to survive after an apocalypse?Writing a poem in secondary language that has rules for primary languageTranslating worldbuilding into an interesting openingShould I make up my own names for the days of the week/monthsFictional cultures and languages existing in the same area?

Have astronauts in space suits ever taken selfies? If so, how?

Fencing style for blades that can attack from a distance

Accidentally leaked the solution to an assignment, what to do now? (I'm the prof)

"to be prejudice towards/against someone" vs "to be prejudiced against/towards someone"

Is it possible to do 50 km distance without any previous training?

If I cast Expeditious Retreat, can I Dash as a bonus action on the same turn?

How to test if a transaction is standard without spending real money?

Font hinting is lost in Chrome-like browsers (for some languages )

What would happen to a modern skyscraper if it rains micro blackholes?

Arthur Somervell: 1000 Exercises - Meaning of this notation

Email Account under attack (really) - anything I can do?

What typically incentivizes a professor to change jobs to a lower ranking university?

Minkowski space

Can divisibility rules for digits be generalized to sum of digits

strToHex ( string to its hex representation as string)

How did the USSR manage to innovate in an environment characterized by government censorship and high bureaucracy?

Writing rule which states that two causes for the same superpower is bad writing

Is it legal for company to use my work email to pretend I still work there?

Approximately how much travel time was saved by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869?

Why does Kotter return in Welcome Back Kotter?

Why not use SQL instead of GraphQL?

Animated Series: Alien black spider robot crashes on Earth

"You are your self first supporter", a more proper way to say it

Prove that NP is closed under karp reduction?



Writing rule which states that two causes for the same superpower is bad writing


The “Rules” of WritingIs it bad writing or just the plot if the hero ends up being as evil as the villain in order to stop the villain's evil?Would having a story set in a conworld based on the modern age alienate readers?Bending the rules of the english language for effect; sentence fragments and run-onsWhat is the rule for commas?How to organically and believably introduce the tools and skills necessary to survive after an apocalypse?Writing a poem in secondary language that has rules for primary languageTranslating worldbuilding into an interesting openingShould I make up my own names for the days of the week/monthsFictional cultures and languages existing in the same area?













6















I've read somewhere that there is this writing rule stating that, for some superpower, it would be less believable if two completely different settings are present in order to obtain the same superpower. In the article, I remember it mentioned in the movie Spiderman (which I've not watched), the protagonist and another character gain the power through different means.



What's this rule and does it have a name?










share|improve this question









New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.















  • 4





    I don't know that rule, but I would disagree. If the superpower is "flying", for example, it's fine if one character got it from a radioactive duck while another got it from a radioactive bumblebee. The only thing that has to be believable is the explanation for them getting their superpowers. Of course if the definition of the superpower is much more narrow, like "flying by antigrav mutations", then it's weird if two character just happen to have the exact same thing, but different reasons for it.

    – Spectrosaurus
    15 hours ago












  • Agreed. In Worm (parahumans wordpress.com), we found out near the end (after 1.5million words) of a common cause for all Powers, but the immediate causes are often very different: flying could bemagnetism, telekinesis, controlling birds and riding giant ones from the past, tinker powers to create a flying suit, your forcefield flies and carries you.... it all works.

    – April
    12 hours ago











  • There's an anime called "Needless" about some people having superpowers (such powers called "fragments" in-universe); the story states that there cannot be two people with the same fragment, but at some point there are 3 characters that control fire. Its later revealed that only one of them actually controls fire per se; other manipulates temperature and the other one creates microwaves. As long as there's a plausible explanation, you can make more than one person with the same abilities and different origins to them.

    – Josh Part
    12 hours ago







  • 1





    All the writers who ever worked on the Justice League or the Avengers are quietly moaning.

    – Cyn
    12 hours ago















6















I've read somewhere that there is this writing rule stating that, for some superpower, it would be less believable if two completely different settings are present in order to obtain the same superpower. In the article, I remember it mentioned in the movie Spiderman (which I've not watched), the protagonist and another character gain the power through different means.



What's this rule and does it have a name?










share|improve this question









New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.















  • 4





    I don't know that rule, but I would disagree. If the superpower is "flying", for example, it's fine if one character got it from a radioactive duck while another got it from a radioactive bumblebee. The only thing that has to be believable is the explanation for them getting their superpowers. Of course if the definition of the superpower is much more narrow, like "flying by antigrav mutations", then it's weird if two character just happen to have the exact same thing, but different reasons for it.

    – Spectrosaurus
    15 hours ago












  • Agreed. In Worm (parahumans wordpress.com), we found out near the end (after 1.5million words) of a common cause for all Powers, but the immediate causes are often very different: flying could bemagnetism, telekinesis, controlling birds and riding giant ones from the past, tinker powers to create a flying suit, your forcefield flies and carries you.... it all works.

    – April
    12 hours ago











  • There's an anime called "Needless" about some people having superpowers (such powers called "fragments" in-universe); the story states that there cannot be two people with the same fragment, but at some point there are 3 characters that control fire. Its later revealed that only one of them actually controls fire per se; other manipulates temperature and the other one creates microwaves. As long as there's a plausible explanation, you can make more than one person with the same abilities and different origins to them.

    – Josh Part
    12 hours ago







  • 1





    All the writers who ever worked on the Justice League or the Avengers are quietly moaning.

    – Cyn
    12 hours ago













6












6








6








I've read somewhere that there is this writing rule stating that, for some superpower, it would be less believable if two completely different settings are present in order to obtain the same superpower. In the article, I remember it mentioned in the movie Spiderman (which I've not watched), the protagonist and another character gain the power through different means.



What's this rule and does it have a name?










share|improve this question









New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.












I've read somewhere that there is this writing rule stating that, for some superpower, it would be less believable if two completely different settings are present in order to obtain the same superpower. In the article, I remember it mentioned in the movie Spiderman (which I've not watched), the protagonist and another character gain the power through different means.



What's this rule and does it have a name?







fantasy world-building rules






share|improve this question









New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.











share|improve this question









New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited 4 mins ago









Nicol Bolas

1857




1857






New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









asked 16 hours ago









lulalalalulalala

1314




1314




New contributor




lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.





New contributor





lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






lulalala is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.







  • 4





    I don't know that rule, but I would disagree. If the superpower is "flying", for example, it's fine if one character got it from a radioactive duck while another got it from a radioactive bumblebee. The only thing that has to be believable is the explanation for them getting their superpowers. Of course if the definition of the superpower is much more narrow, like "flying by antigrav mutations", then it's weird if two character just happen to have the exact same thing, but different reasons for it.

    – Spectrosaurus
    15 hours ago












  • Agreed. In Worm (parahumans wordpress.com), we found out near the end (after 1.5million words) of a common cause for all Powers, but the immediate causes are often very different: flying could bemagnetism, telekinesis, controlling birds and riding giant ones from the past, tinker powers to create a flying suit, your forcefield flies and carries you.... it all works.

    – April
    12 hours ago











  • There's an anime called "Needless" about some people having superpowers (such powers called "fragments" in-universe); the story states that there cannot be two people with the same fragment, but at some point there are 3 characters that control fire. Its later revealed that only one of them actually controls fire per se; other manipulates temperature and the other one creates microwaves. As long as there's a plausible explanation, you can make more than one person with the same abilities and different origins to them.

    – Josh Part
    12 hours ago







  • 1





    All the writers who ever worked on the Justice League or the Avengers are quietly moaning.

    – Cyn
    12 hours ago












  • 4





    I don't know that rule, but I would disagree. If the superpower is "flying", for example, it's fine if one character got it from a radioactive duck while another got it from a radioactive bumblebee. The only thing that has to be believable is the explanation for them getting their superpowers. Of course if the definition of the superpower is much more narrow, like "flying by antigrav mutations", then it's weird if two character just happen to have the exact same thing, but different reasons for it.

    – Spectrosaurus
    15 hours ago












  • Agreed. In Worm (parahumans wordpress.com), we found out near the end (after 1.5million words) of a common cause for all Powers, but the immediate causes are often very different: flying could bemagnetism, telekinesis, controlling birds and riding giant ones from the past, tinker powers to create a flying suit, your forcefield flies and carries you.... it all works.

    – April
    12 hours ago











  • There's an anime called "Needless" about some people having superpowers (such powers called "fragments" in-universe); the story states that there cannot be two people with the same fragment, but at some point there are 3 characters that control fire. Its later revealed that only one of them actually controls fire per se; other manipulates temperature and the other one creates microwaves. As long as there's a plausible explanation, you can make more than one person with the same abilities and different origins to them.

    – Josh Part
    12 hours ago







  • 1





    All the writers who ever worked on the Justice League or the Avengers are quietly moaning.

    – Cyn
    12 hours ago







4




4





I don't know that rule, but I would disagree. If the superpower is "flying", for example, it's fine if one character got it from a radioactive duck while another got it from a radioactive bumblebee. The only thing that has to be believable is the explanation for them getting their superpowers. Of course if the definition of the superpower is much more narrow, like "flying by antigrav mutations", then it's weird if two character just happen to have the exact same thing, but different reasons for it.

– Spectrosaurus
15 hours ago






I don't know that rule, but I would disagree. If the superpower is "flying", for example, it's fine if one character got it from a radioactive duck while another got it from a radioactive bumblebee. The only thing that has to be believable is the explanation for them getting their superpowers. Of course if the definition of the superpower is much more narrow, like "flying by antigrav mutations", then it's weird if two character just happen to have the exact same thing, but different reasons for it.

– Spectrosaurus
15 hours ago














Agreed. In Worm (parahumans wordpress.com), we found out near the end (after 1.5million words) of a common cause for all Powers, but the immediate causes are often very different: flying could bemagnetism, telekinesis, controlling birds and riding giant ones from the past, tinker powers to create a flying suit, your forcefield flies and carries you.... it all works.

– April
12 hours ago





Agreed. In Worm (parahumans wordpress.com), we found out near the end (after 1.5million words) of a common cause for all Powers, but the immediate causes are often very different: flying could bemagnetism, telekinesis, controlling birds and riding giant ones from the past, tinker powers to create a flying suit, your forcefield flies and carries you.... it all works.

– April
12 hours ago













There's an anime called "Needless" about some people having superpowers (such powers called "fragments" in-universe); the story states that there cannot be two people with the same fragment, but at some point there are 3 characters that control fire. Its later revealed that only one of them actually controls fire per se; other manipulates temperature and the other one creates microwaves. As long as there's a plausible explanation, you can make more than one person with the same abilities and different origins to them.

– Josh Part
12 hours ago






There's an anime called "Needless" about some people having superpowers (such powers called "fragments" in-universe); the story states that there cannot be two people with the same fragment, but at some point there are 3 characters that control fire. Its later revealed that only one of them actually controls fire per se; other manipulates temperature and the other one creates microwaves. As long as there's a plausible explanation, you can make more than one person with the same abilities and different origins to them.

– Josh Part
12 hours ago





1




1





All the writers who ever worked on the Justice League or the Avengers are quietly moaning.

– Cyn
12 hours ago





All the writers who ever worked on the Justice League or the Avengers are quietly moaning.

– Cyn
12 hours ago










3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes


















5














First, welcome to StackExchange!



Now onto your question: there aren't any enforced rules when it comes to superpowers or even fiction. The closest thing would be a consistency guideline. Consistency, while not a rule, is usually something a reader will be quick to call out if they perceive it to be broken.



When you hear readers complain about a story having many plot-holes, a lack of consistency is sometimes the cause. But what the reader expects to be a constant changes from story to story. As the writer, you set what is believable or unbelievable in your setting.



Take My Hero Academia (Boku no Hīrō Akademia) for example: the story establishes early on that people in that universe are born with superpowers. Their genetics determine what 'quirk' they are born with and from there they can train their power and become stronger, but never change the ability itself. Without getting into any spoilers, the plot deals with a rare example of where that isn't the case. While that may break the consistency established at the beginning of the story, the plot goes on to explain how this happens and what it means in that universe.



The bottom line is: As an author, you determine everything that is a possibility in your world. As long as you give the reader enough information as to how anomalies can occur (or even foreshadow that they may occur), the consistency isn't broken.






share|improve this answer






























    5














    I have been researching comics history for a few decades and I have never heard of such a rule. Others in the thread have given examples.



    It's true that there are a few stories in which all superpowers have a common source, typically an alien contaminant into the Earth biosphere (J. Michael Straczynski's series Rising Stars and Supreme Power both explore this option, as does the Wild Cards anthology), however these are the exception rather than the rule.



    Keep in mind that the most established superhero universes (Marvel and DC), the characters were created in tandem and only after the fact organised into a unified 'universe' ... so you might have the Human Torch (who flies because, I suppose, heat rises) battle the Sub-Mariner (who flies because he has little wings on his feet) ... and there was never any sense of contradiction there.






    share|improve this answer






























      2














      For something to genuinely be considered a "rule" of writing, which will delineate bad writing from the rest, it generally has to denote something that is hard to do successfully. Given the fact that most Superhero universes violate this rule all the time, and they're currently quite popular, evidence for this rule being able to separate good writing from bad is pretty minimal.



      So odds are good this was just a statement from someone who prefers that sort of thing, aggrandizing their own preferences by declaring them to be a "rule".



      That having been said, "believe-ability" is an interesting domain. The thing is, in the general Superhero milieu, pretty much anything which does not directly contradict previously established rules is more or less acceptable. To the extent that Superheros are science fiction, they are very clearly on the softer side of it. The softer the sci-fi, the less "believe-able" it needs to be; the audience is pretty willing to swallow a lot of oddball concepts if they are interesting and you're giving them what they're interested in (cool action/etc).



      Sci-fi hardness is a useful way to examine this "rule". It is effectively promotes a kind of "One Big Lie (TV Tropes)" style of superpowers and world-building. That is, you pick one, or maybe a few, mechanisms for how superpowers work, and you stick with just that. Different powersets are just a matter of how someone chooses to use the special rules and physical laws you create.



      Is that more "believe-able"? Well, it is easier to swallow a single change to reality than the anything-goes style of many superhero universes. Some people may take a work more seriously if it is like reality except for one thing, particularly those who like hard Sci-Fi. And having this kind of focus can lead to some interesting worldbuilding scenarios, which can lead to unique superheroics and the like.






      share|improve this answer























        Your Answer








        StackExchange.ready(function()
        var channelOptions =
        tags: "".split(" "),
        id: "166"
        ;
        initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

        StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function()
        // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
        if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled)
        StackExchange.using("snippets", function()
        createEditor();
        );

        else
        createEditor();

        );

        function createEditor()
        StackExchange.prepareEditor(
        heartbeatType: 'answer',
        autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
        convertImagesToLinks: false,
        noModals: true,
        showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
        reputationToPostImages: null,
        bindNavPrevention: true,
        postfix: "",
        imageUploader:
        brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
        contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
        allowUrls: true
        ,
        noCode: true, onDemand: true,
        discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
        ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
        );



        );






        lulalala is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.









        draft saved

        draft discarded


















        StackExchange.ready(
        function ()
        StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fwriting.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f44419%2fwriting-rule-which-states-that-two-causes-for-the-same-superpower-is-bad-writing%23new-answer', 'question_page');

        );

        Post as a guest















        Required, but never shown

























        3 Answers
        3






        active

        oldest

        votes








        3 Answers
        3






        active

        oldest

        votes









        active

        oldest

        votes






        active

        oldest

        votes









        5














        First, welcome to StackExchange!



        Now onto your question: there aren't any enforced rules when it comes to superpowers or even fiction. The closest thing would be a consistency guideline. Consistency, while not a rule, is usually something a reader will be quick to call out if they perceive it to be broken.



        When you hear readers complain about a story having many plot-holes, a lack of consistency is sometimes the cause. But what the reader expects to be a constant changes from story to story. As the writer, you set what is believable or unbelievable in your setting.



        Take My Hero Academia (Boku no Hīrō Akademia) for example: the story establishes early on that people in that universe are born with superpowers. Their genetics determine what 'quirk' they are born with and from there they can train their power and become stronger, but never change the ability itself. Without getting into any spoilers, the plot deals with a rare example of where that isn't the case. While that may break the consistency established at the beginning of the story, the plot goes on to explain how this happens and what it means in that universe.



        The bottom line is: As an author, you determine everything that is a possibility in your world. As long as you give the reader enough information as to how anomalies can occur (or even foreshadow that they may occur), the consistency isn't broken.






        share|improve this answer



























          5














          First, welcome to StackExchange!



          Now onto your question: there aren't any enforced rules when it comes to superpowers or even fiction. The closest thing would be a consistency guideline. Consistency, while not a rule, is usually something a reader will be quick to call out if they perceive it to be broken.



          When you hear readers complain about a story having many plot-holes, a lack of consistency is sometimes the cause. But what the reader expects to be a constant changes from story to story. As the writer, you set what is believable or unbelievable in your setting.



          Take My Hero Academia (Boku no Hīrō Akademia) for example: the story establishes early on that people in that universe are born with superpowers. Their genetics determine what 'quirk' they are born with and from there they can train their power and become stronger, but never change the ability itself. Without getting into any spoilers, the plot deals with a rare example of where that isn't the case. While that may break the consistency established at the beginning of the story, the plot goes on to explain how this happens and what it means in that universe.



          The bottom line is: As an author, you determine everything that is a possibility in your world. As long as you give the reader enough information as to how anomalies can occur (or even foreshadow that they may occur), the consistency isn't broken.






          share|improve this answer

























            5












            5








            5







            First, welcome to StackExchange!



            Now onto your question: there aren't any enforced rules when it comes to superpowers or even fiction. The closest thing would be a consistency guideline. Consistency, while not a rule, is usually something a reader will be quick to call out if they perceive it to be broken.



            When you hear readers complain about a story having many plot-holes, a lack of consistency is sometimes the cause. But what the reader expects to be a constant changes from story to story. As the writer, you set what is believable or unbelievable in your setting.



            Take My Hero Academia (Boku no Hīrō Akademia) for example: the story establishes early on that people in that universe are born with superpowers. Their genetics determine what 'quirk' they are born with and from there they can train their power and become stronger, but never change the ability itself. Without getting into any spoilers, the plot deals with a rare example of where that isn't the case. While that may break the consistency established at the beginning of the story, the plot goes on to explain how this happens and what it means in that universe.



            The bottom line is: As an author, you determine everything that is a possibility in your world. As long as you give the reader enough information as to how anomalies can occur (or even foreshadow that they may occur), the consistency isn't broken.






            share|improve this answer













            First, welcome to StackExchange!



            Now onto your question: there aren't any enforced rules when it comes to superpowers or even fiction. The closest thing would be a consistency guideline. Consistency, while not a rule, is usually something a reader will be quick to call out if they perceive it to be broken.



            When you hear readers complain about a story having many plot-holes, a lack of consistency is sometimes the cause. But what the reader expects to be a constant changes from story to story. As the writer, you set what is believable or unbelievable in your setting.



            Take My Hero Academia (Boku no Hīrō Akademia) for example: the story establishes early on that people in that universe are born with superpowers. Their genetics determine what 'quirk' they are born with and from there they can train their power and become stronger, but never change the ability itself. Without getting into any spoilers, the plot deals with a rare example of where that isn't the case. While that may break the consistency established at the beginning of the story, the plot goes on to explain how this happens and what it means in that universe.



            The bottom line is: As an author, you determine everything that is a possibility in your world. As long as you give the reader enough information as to how anomalies can occur (or even foreshadow that they may occur), the consistency isn't broken.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered 15 hours ago









            RoboticArchangelRoboticArchangel

            835




            835





















                5














                I have been researching comics history for a few decades and I have never heard of such a rule. Others in the thread have given examples.



                It's true that there are a few stories in which all superpowers have a common source, typically an alien contaminant into the Earth biosphere (J. Michael Straczynski's series Rising Stars and Supreme Power both explore this option, as does the Wild Cards anthology), however these are the exception rather than the rule.



                Keep in mind that the most established superhero universes (Marvel and DC), the characters were created in tandem and only after the fact organised into a unified 'universe' ... so you might have the Human Torch (who flies because, I suppose, heat rises) battle the Sub-Mariner (who flies because he has little wings on his feet) ... and there was never any sense of contradiction there.






                share|improve this answer



























                  5














                  I have been researching comics history for a few decades and I have never heard of such a rule. Others in the thread have given examples.



                  It's true that there are a few stories in which all superpowers have a common source, typically an alien contaminant into the Earth biosphere (J. Michael Straczynski's series Rising Stars and Supreme Power both explore this option, as does the Wild Cards anthology), however these are the exception rather than the rule.



                  Keep in mind that the most established superhero universes (Marvel and DC), the characters were created in tandem and only after the fact organised into a unified 'universe' ... so you might have the Human Torch (who flies because, I suppose, heat rises) battle the Sub-Mariner (who flies because he has little wings on his feet) ... and there was never any sense of contradiction there.






                  share|improve this answer

























                    5












                    5








                    5







                    I have been researching comics history for a few decades and I have never heard of such a rule. Others in the thread have given examples.



                    It's true that there are a few stories in which all superpowers have a common source, typically an alien contaminant into the Earth biosphere (J. Michael Straczynski's series Rising Stars and Supreme Power both explore this option, as does the Wild Cards anthology), however these are the exception rather than the rule.



                    Keep in mind that the most established superhero universes (Marvel and DC), the characters were created in tandem and only after the fact organised into a unified 'universe' ... so you might have the Human Torch (who flies because, I suppose, heat rises) battle the Sub-Mariner (who flies because he has little wings on his feet) ... and there was never any sense of contradiction there.






                    share|improve this answer













                    I have been researching comics history for a few decades and I have never heard of such a rule. Others in the thread have given examples.



                    It's true that there are a few stories in which all superpowers have a common source, typically an alien contaminant into the Earth biosphere (J. Michael Straczynski's series Rising Stars and Supreme Power both explore this option, as does the Wild Cards anthology), however these are the exception rather than the rule.



                    Keep in mind that the most established superhero universes (Marvel and DC), the characters were created in tandem and only after the fact organised into a unified 'universe' ... so you might have the Human Torch (who flies because, I suppose, heat rises) battle the Sub-Mariner (who flies because he has little wings on his feet) ... and there was never any sense of contradiction there.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered 12 hours ago









                    El CadejoEl Cadejo

                    4562




                    4562





















                        2














                        For something to genuinely be considered a "rule" of writing, which will delineate bad writing from the rest, it generally has to denote something that is hard to do successfully. Given the fact that most Superhero universes violate this rule all the time, and they're currently quite popular, evidence for this rule being able to separate good writing from bad is pretty minimal.



                        So odds are good this was just a statement from someone who prefers that sort of thing, aggrandizing their own preferences by declaring them to be a "rule".



                        That having been said, "believe-ability" is an interesting domain. The thing is, in the general Superhero milieu, pretty much anything which does not directly contradict previously established rules is more or less acceptable. To the extent that Superheros are science fiction, they are very clearly on the softer side of it. The softer the sci-fi, the less "believe-able" it needs to be; the audience is pretty willing to swallow a lot of oddball concepts if they are interesting and you're giving them what they're interested in (cool action/etc).



                        Sci-fi hardness is a useful way to examine this "rule". It is effectively promotes a kind of "One Big Lie (TV Tropes)" style of superpowers and world-building. That is, you pick one, or maybe a few, mechanisms for how superpowers work, and you stick with just that. Different powersets are just a matter of how someone chooses to use the special rules and physical laws you create.



                        Is that more "believe-able"? Well, it is easier to swallow a single change to reality than the anything-goes style of many superhero universes. Some people may take a work more seriously if it is like reality except for one thing, particularly those who like hard Sci-Fi. And having this kind of focus can lead to some interesting worldbuilding scenarios, which can lead to unique superheroics and the like.






                        share|improve this answer



























                          2














                          For something to genuinely be considered a "rule" of writing, which will delineate bad writing from the rest, it generally has to denote something that is hard to do successfully. Given the fact that most Superhero universes violate this rule all the time, and they're currently quite popular, evidence for this rule being able to separate good writing from bad is pretty minimal.



                          So odds are good this was just a statement from someone who prefers that sort of thing, aggrandizing their own preferences by declaring them to be a "rule".



                          That having been said, "believe-ability" is an interesting domain. The thing is, in the general Superhero milieu, pretty much anything which does not directly contradict previously established rules is more or less acceptable. To the extent that Superheros are science fiction, they are very clearly on the softer side of it. The softer the sci-fi, the less "believe-able" it needs to be; the audience is pretty willing to swallow a lot of oddball concepts if they are interesting and you're giving them what they're interested in (cool action/etc).



                          Sci-fi hardness is a useful way to examine this "rule". It is effectively promotes a kind of "One Big Lie (TV Tropes)" style of superpowers and world-building. That is, you pick one, or maybe a few, mechanisms for how superpowers work, and you stick with just that. Different powersets are just a matter of how someone chooses to use the special rules and physical laws you create.



                          Is that more "believe-able"? Well, it is easier to swallow a single change to reality than the anything-goes style of many superhero universes. Some people may take a work more seriously if it is like reality except for one thing, particularly those who like hard Sci-Fi. And having this kind of focus can lead to some interesting worldbuilding scenarios, which can lead to unique superheroics and the like.






                          share|improve this answer

























                            2












                            2








                            2







                            For something to genuinely be considered a "rule" of writing, which will delineate bad writing from the rest, it generally has to denote something that is hard to do successfully. Given the fact that most Superhero universes violate this rule all the time, and they're currently quite popular, evidence for this rule being able to separate good writing from bad is pretty minimal.



                            So odds are good this was just a statement from someone who prefers that sort of thing, aggrandizing their own preferences by declaring them to be a "rule".



                            That having been said, "believe-ability" is an interesting domain. The thing is, in the general Superhero milieu, pretty much anything which does not directly contradict previously established rules is more or less acceptable. To the extent that Superheros are science fiction, they are very clearly on the softer side of it. The softer the sci-fi, the less "believe-able" it needs to be; the audience is pretty willing to swallow a lot of oddball concepts if they are interesting and you're giving them what they're interested in (cool action/etc).



                            Sci-fi hardness is a useful way to examine this "rule". It is effectively promotes a kind of "One Big Lie (TV Tropes)" style of superpowers and world-building. That is, you pick one, or maybe a few, mechanisms for how superpowers work, and you stick with just that. Different powersets are just a matter of how someone chooses to use the special rules and physical laws you create.



                            Is that more "believe-able"? Well, it is easier to swallow a single change to reality than the anything-goes style of many superhero universes. Some people may take a work more seriously if it is like reality except for one thing, particularly those who like hard Sci-Fi. And having this kind of focus can lead to some interesting worldbuilding scenarios, which can lead to unique superheroics and the like.






                            share|improve this answer













                            For something to genuinely be considered a "rule" of writing, which will delineate bad writing from the rest, it generally has to denote something that is hard to do successfully. Given the fact that most Superhero universes violate this rule all the time, and they're currently quite popular, evidence for this rule being able to separate good writing from bad is pretty minimal.



                            So odds are good this was just a statement from someone who prefers that sort of thing, aggrandizing their own preferences by declaring them to be a "rule".



                            That having been said, "believe-ability" is an interesting domain. The thing is, in the general Superhero milieu, pretty much anything which does not directly contradict previously established rules is more or less acceptable. To the extent that Superheros are science fiction, they are very clearly on the softer side of it. The softer the sci-fi, the less "believe-able" it needs to be; the audience is pretty willing to swallow a lot of oddball concepts if they are interesting and you're giving them what they're interested in (cool action/etc).



                            Sci-fi hardness is a useful way to examine this "rule". It is effectively promotes a kind of "One Big Lie (TV Tropes)" style of superpowers and world-building. That is, you pick one, or maybe a few, mechanisms for how superpowers work, and you stick with just that. Different powersets are just a matter of how someone chooses to use the special rules and physical laws you create.



                            Is that more "believe-able"? Well, it is easier to swallow a single change to reality than the anything-goes style of many superhero universes. Some people may take a work more seriously if it is like reality except for one thing, particularly those who like hard Sci-Fi. And having this kind of focus can lead to some interesting worldbuilding scenarios, which can lead to unique superheroics and the like.







                            share|improve this answer












                            share|improve this answer



                            share|improve this answer










                            answered 8 hours ago









                            Nicol BolasNicol Bolas

                            1857




                            1857




















                                lulalala is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.









                                draft saved

                                draft discarded


















                                lulalala is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.












                                lulalala is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.











                                lulalala is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.














                                Thanks for contributing an answer to Writing Stack Exchange!


                                • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

                                But avoid


                                • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

                                • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.

                                To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.




                                draft saved


                                draft discarded














                                StackExchange.ready(
                                function ()
                                StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fwriting.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f44419%2fwriting-rule-which-states-that-two-causes-for-the-same-superpower-is-bad-writing%23new-answer', 'question_page');

                                );

                                Post as a guest















                                Required, but never shown





















































                                Required, but never shown














                                Required, but never shown












                                Required, but never shown







                                Required, but never shown

































                                Required, but never shown














                                Required, but never shown












                                Required, but never shown







                                Required, but never shown







                                Popular posts from this blog

                                Can not update quote_id field of “quote_item” table magento 2Magento 2.1 - We can't remove the item. (Shopping Cart doesnt allow us to remove items before becomes empty)Add value for custom quote item attribute using REST apiREST API endpoint v1/carts/cartId/items always returns error messageCorrect way to save entries to databaseHow to remove all associated quote objects of a customer completelyMagento 2 - Save value from custom input field to quote_itemGet quote_item data using quote id and product id filter in Magento 2How to set additional data to quote_item table from controller in Magento 2?What is the purpose of additional_data column in quote_item table in magento2Set Custom Price to Quote item magento2 from controller

                                Magento 2 disable Secret Key on URL's from terminal The Next CEO of Stack OverflowMagento 2 Shortcut/GUI tool to perform commandline tasks for windowsIn menu add configuration linkMagento oAuth : Generating access token and access secretMagento 2 security key issue in Third-Party API redirect URIPublic actions in admin controllersHow to Disable Cache in Custom WidgetURL Key not changing in Magento 2Product URL Key gets deleted when importing custom options - Magento 2Problem with reindex terminalMagento 2 - bin/magento Commands not working in Cpanel Terminal

                                Aasi (pallopeli) Navigointivalikko